In a clear sign that free speech, dissent, and capitalism are still very much fettered in China, read here the tale of Zou Tao and his real estate boycott.
At 5: 10 p.m. on May 11, when Zou was about to board the plane to Beijing to submit his open letter, his airline ticket and ID card were confiscated at the Shenzhen airport. He was detained until 3:00 a.m. the next morning—10 hours.
The last words Zou wrote on his blog described his feelings at the time he was prevented from boarding the plane: “The moment I saw the name ‘Zou Tao’ listed on the blacklist in the security center at the airport, I completely lost all hope. At that moment, I started to doubt what I had done in those years, and even doubted all my education.”
“Every second was painful. It was all dark, like a nightmare. I cannot but admit that in the present state of society, most people can only live without dignity. We live like dogs. Maybe after this, there will be another nightmare waiting for me. Maybe I can no longer stay in Shenzhen, the so-called frontline of economic reform. But I have to face all this. I will not complain, nor regret.”
It is my fear that the government in China will over-react to the coming Olympics, and try to make everything too perfect. In a healthy country governed by the wise some signs of dissent are visible always, and debate is also visible.
If everything is too perfect, then most visitors will leave the Olympics worrying for the people of China and their future. The leadership of China is showing great vision –Â perhaps better than some in the west with their nuclear energy initiatives, but they still need to make strides for allowance of civil dissent and civil debate.
Update: See Gateway Pundit’s coverage of the Anniversary of The Tiananmen Square massacre here.
See Publius Pundit’s article on the same here.
